Warm Homes Loan Scheme opens the door for local plumbers to offer heat pumps, says Alto Energy
Heat pump specialist Alto Energy Limited has welcomed today's launch of the government's Warm Homes Loan Scheme, calling it a major opportunity for local plumbing and heating businesses to start offering heat pumps to their own customers.
Announced by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the scheme gives households across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland access to no- and low-interest loans for clean energy upgrades, with nothing to pay upfront. Homeowners can borrow up to £20,000 for an air source heat pump or £35,000 for a ground source heat pump, with up to 30 years to repay from some lenders, and can combine the loan with a Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant of up to £9,000.
There is one condition that matters for the trade: every loan-funded installation (other than heat network connections) must be carried out by an MCS-certified installer. For many small plumbing and heating firms, the cost and admin of gaining MCS certification has been the barrier to offering heat pumps, and would have kept them out of the scheme.
Alto Energy's Alto Assured MCS Umbrella Scheme removes that barrier. The local plumber installs the heat pump for their own customer, while Alto Energy provides the heat loss design, equipment, commissioning, MCS certification and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme application. Installers start with Alto's free heat pump training course and receive ongoing technical support.
Matt Townsend, Sales Director at Alto Energy, said:
"Most homeowners already have a plumber they trust, and that's who they want fitting their heat pump. The Warm Homes Loan Scheme takes away the upfront cost for the customer; our umbrella scheme takes away the MCS hurdle for the installer. Put together, a local heating engineer can now offer a fully MCS-certified heat pump that qualifies for both the grant and the loan, without becoming certified themselves. If you're a plumber who has been thinking about heat pumps, now is the time to talk to us."
The government estimates that a household installing a heat pump, battery and solar panels could save up to £550 a year on energy bills, rising by a further £300 a year with a time-of-use tariff.
Plumbers and heating engineers can book free heat pump training or join the Alto Assured network at www.altoenergy.co.uk/mcs-umbrella-scheme. Homeowners can contact Alto Energy to be put in touch with a local Alto Assured installer.
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Notes to editors
Full government factsheet: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/warm-homes-loan-scheme-factsheet
All installations funded by the scheme, except heat network connections, must be carried out by MCS-certified installers.
Launch lenders: HomeServe (with E.ON), HTG Finance, Propensio, Secure Trust Bank, Selina Finance, South Manchester Credit Union, Sunsave, Tandem Bank (with British Gas), The Money Co-op and thisbank. Further lenders are expected to join.
Maximum loans: air-to-water heat pump £20,000; ground source heat pump £35,000; air-to-air heat pump £10,000 (once MCS certification is available); solar panels £15,000; battery storage £15,000; biomass boiler £20,000; micro-renewable system £20,000; heat network connection £7,500.
Lenders carry out their normal affordability, credit and eligibility checks.
About Alto Energy
Alto Energy Limited, based in Carterton, Oxfordshire, is a heat pump specialist and distributor that pioneered the MCS umbrella scheme for plumbers. Through Alto Assured, it gives plumbing and heating businesses across the UK free training, system design, equipment supply, commissioning, MCS certification and technical support, so they can deliver heat pumps for their own customers. Alto Energy also designs and installs systems for homeowners, self-builders and developers, working with Mitsubishi, Samsung, Worcester Bosch, IVT and Viessmann.
Media contact
Aaron Cushion · info@altoenergy.co.uk · 01993 220699